2026 WCQ: Greece - Denmark (8 September 2025 21:45 EEST, Stadio Giorgos Karaiskakis, Piraeus)

[Greekoz]

3 minutes ago, Brklyngrk said:

The 1st goal was on a Kourbelis error, he was disposed as we had possession. The second goal was from a shot outside the box - don't think it was a counter.  The third goal was a counter where the ball was passed down the right side and our goalie had to come up (did he though?) to stop the counter.

Yeh i'd say the 3rd we got caught out not even mentioning Tsolakis brain fade but the game was already over at that point. When the game was up for grabs we couldnt get out of our own half, thanks to sloppy play. The 2nd goal infuriated me we just completely backed off.

Denmarks coaching staff would have been doing cartwheels when Karetsas got subbed out, the one player they can change the game with 1-2 touches gets taken out.

Edited Monday at 08:55 PM by Greekoz

[Ellada2004]

3 minutes ago, Brklyngrk said:

100% - not sure what he was thinking. I totally get Bakesetas, try to calm them down but bringing in someone who probably should not be called up in the first place..

I get Bakasetas coming on but taking off Karetsas when we are chasing a goal? He was one of our few bright lights.

[Antaeus7]

Greece have to win out all 4 matches to win the group, unfortunately that will not happen. 

[Greekoz]

Just now, Antaeus7 said:

Greece have to win out all 4 matches to win the group, unfortunately that will not happen. 

We just need to stay alive in the next game, a loss and its finished 3 games in.

[J1078]

The big issue now is allowing 3 goals against us tonight make winning the group and us qualifying directly very difficult. We need to beat Scotland just to make sure we secure second and a playoff spot just to have a chance to go to the world cup or kiss another tournament goodbye. 

 

Denmark 4 (+ 3)

Scotland 4 (+2)

Greece 3  (+1)

Belarus 0

[Omonoia9]

GROUP C STANDINGS

 

Denmark-4

Scotland-4

Greece-3

Belarus-0

[HellasLEAF]

50 minutes ago, J1078 said:

The minute there’s a little hype around this team and they start pulling in crowds they lay a massive egg in big games. They did it with the game against England here, they did it against Georgia and now Denmark.

Pains to say but it's true.  Not sure if it's nerves or expectation but they aren't looking great in front of the home crowd, which you would think is the opposite in football.  They play better in all the away match.  

Denmark head and shoulders better today, the game turning clearly from copping the first goal, which allowed them to sit even deeper and hit us on the counter. 

We went from dreaming to now hoping in a flash.  It did not appear we were on Denmark's level in any aspect deeply humbling and concerning. 

Edited Monday at 09:23 PM by HellasLEAF

[Bootman]

One question. Were was Mouzakitis? Why wasn't he even on the bench? Him and Zafeiris should start every game. Why is he putting in Kourbelis?

[Ellada2004]

Kourbelis should never have started this match and should have been subbed off at HT if not earlier. Karetsas should have been allowed at least another 15mins in the second half to try and rescue a goal for us. Jovanovich was right to sub off Konstantelias he was not on his game and neither was Tzolis as I said during the match. Denmark are a well organized side but we made them look like Argentina. I watched a lot of their first match and they struggled vs an average Scottish side at home. I never thought they would come to Greece and win in this fashion. We failed to keep the ball and made silly passes and guys tried to dribble past 2 or 3 defenders too. Greece have to get themselves together and have to get a win at Scotland. I can see the Scots just sitting back and waiting to counter us as they did in the two nations league matches. Scotland only got a 2 nil win vs Belarus and their first goal came in the 43rd minute. 

[Dean97]

I wouldn't have subbed out Konstantelias and Karetsas straight away in the second half. Konstantelias looked out of it, but I would have waited until around the 60th minute mark to make changes. It was only 0-1 at that point, and these guys can create something out of nothing. It was too early to sub them out. I agree that Kourbelis shouldn't have even been in the squad, but the fact that we haven't got anyone else with height and quality yet shows that we lack real depth in this position. It's inexcusable to leave out Mouzakitis in this game; he would have brought something. He's our most creative central midfielder at the moment.

I thought Zafeiris played well. He ran, covered, tackled, and even produced some individual brilliance with the ball. He's been a great addition. We need to replace Kourbelis in my opinion, and hopefully, some young player emerges soon and takes his spot. Mouzakitis should start, but we also need another player with height and quality.

I expected more out of Pavlidis; I thought some of his touches were off, and the same can be said about Tzolis. We still played well, and the attacking intent is there. Also, to Denmark's credit, they were on it defensively today, getting to the ball as quickly as possible. It's a great learning curve for the young guys, as this team is mostly young, and so it should be. It's all still to play for. We have great players and should learn from our mistakes. We need more depth in some positions and quality depth. Let's all be patient with the team, as the right pieces are mostly in place with a few adjustments. I believe in this team.

[Blackhawk]

Jovanivic was outcoached. The Danes neutralized our offensive threats quite well, and then they just punished us when we made mistakes. Maybe it would have been better if he started Bakasetas and then go with Konstantelias in 2nd half.

The next two games will decide our fa. Win against Scotland (we have done it before), and maybe try to get a tie in Copenhagen to keep us in the race.

 

[J1078]

Our only chance now is getting 2nd as the chance at first is done. What looked to be a dream start by winning and having Scotland and Denmark draw, now looks to be a bad result for us. Would have been better if Denmark beat Scotland. To have at chance at 2nd and a playoff we need to beat Scotland twice and hope for at least a draw in Denmark. (Tough task)

I’m still excited about this young team regardless of the result tonight. It’s by far the most skilled team we’ve had and as these kids grow together they will eventually learn how to handle these big games. 
 

We need to find a way to take 2nd I can’t handle missing another tournament.. 
 

 

Edited Tuesday at 01:07 PM by J1078

[Bootman]

I believe the answer to what you said Dean is Nectarios Triantis, tall defensive midfielder that just got his Greek citizenship. He will probably call him up for October games.

Hopefully Giannoulis is fit for those games also as I believe we play better when he is starting at LB.

 

 

[Dean97]

20 hours ago, Bootman said:

I believe the answer to what you said Dean is Nectarios Triantis, tall defensive midfielder that just got his Greek citizenship. He will probably call him up for October games.

Hopefully Giannoulis is fit for those games also as I believe we play better when he is starting at LB.

 

 

I agree. Now that you mentioned it I believe we do play better with him not saying Tsimikas is bad or anything but I think Giannoulis adds something else to our play especially going forward and links up well with Tzolis. 

I’m hoping Triantis can he useful for us. Time will tell. 

[Bootman]

I believe going forward Mouzakitis has to be starting over Kourbelis. The kid is one of the most sought after young mids right now. You cannot be starting Kourbelis over Mouzakitis.

He was directly responsible for their first goal with his giveaway. Tzolis is our best player right now on the NT but he gave the ball away like 4 or 5 times unacceptable.  Tzolakis had a complete brain fart on the 3rd goal. What was he doing? I also find Tsimikas to be a bit of a defensive liability that's why I prefer Giannoulis.

We definitely need a win in Scotland to get us back into 2nd place. I hope all the players are fit for the October games.